Friday, March 05, 2010

Obamanomics prolonging the recession

Conn Carroll of the Heritage Foundationwrote a post this morning summarizing how the Obama agenda (Porkulus, Obamacare, and Cap-and-Tax) is discouraging job creation and prolonging the recession. To get the other side to that argument, I checked with the progressive/leftist Campaign for America's Future where Isaiah J. Poole has written a detailed response to the Heritage post:

There does not appear to be a single credible shred of evidence—such as a poll from a nonpartisan, nonideological organization—that the average Main Street employer — who, conservatives continually remind us, is more often than not a small business owner — is not adding employees primarily because he or she is quaking in fear of what Democrats are doing in Washington.

In fact, that's not even supported by the latest survey this week from the National Federation of Independent Business, a foe of much of the progressive job-creating agenda and an echo for many of the right-wing talking points. The summary of its "Small Business Economic Trends" report says, in part:

Owners complained that “poor sales” was their top problem, and there is no need to hire with no new customers. It is hard for workers to “earn their pay” in this environment, a necessity if a firm is to stay in business. Ten (10) percent (seasonally adjusted) reported unfilled job openings, unchanged from December but historically low. Over the next three months, a seasonally adjusted net negative one percent of owners planning to create new jobs, a one point improvement, but still more firms planning to cut jobs than planning to add.

Businesses were also asked what was their "single most important problem." Thirty-one percent said "poor sales," 22 percent said "taxes" and 13 percent said "government regulations and red tape." [Emph. added]

Obamacare and Cap-and-Tax would both include massive tax increases and, while Porkulus is deficit financed, it will clearly require tax increases in coming years to pay back the debt. Thus, the Obama agenda is aimed at raising taxes at a time when 22% of business owners said "taxes" was their "single most important problem." At the same time, Obamacare and Cap-and-Tax both add major new government regulations and red tape at a time when 13% of business owners say that such regulations and red tape are their "single most important problem." Put those two together and you have 35% of business owners who say the Obama agenda is their "single most important problem." That is even larger than the 31% who cited "poor sales." If Mr. Poole does not see a "single shred of evidence" that the problem is the Democrat agenda, it is because he is not looking.